Prefabricated foldable structures already exist and provide useful accommodation for permanent occupation and also for temporary workforces involved in mining, farming, construction and re-construction in remote areas. Foldable buildings are designed to meet the requirements of efficient transport, storage and erection, re-transport and reuse. Such designs fold out in a variety of different ways after arriving on site. Many however, rely on mechanical opening devices such as wheel and track systems while others require a crane to lift components into place. In most cases the roof element needs to be temporarily supported while other elements are secured in place.
The demand for prefabricated structures suited for easy and quick deployment is increasing for a number of reasons, e.g. the frequency of natural disasters has led to an increased need for both emergency housing and shelters for the provision of medical and other services to victims.
An affordability problem exists for housing and other building provision in regional and remote areas where lack of skilled trades and expensive goods delivery charges inflate the cost. Manufacture of buildings or building elements in the factory to a substantially complete form ready for connection to services and use on a particular site is known and goes some way towards addressing this problem. However, it is often not practical, feasible or economic to transport these buildings or building elements due to their large physical size.